Who knew that cakes could be so rude? In this strangely entertaining book, there is a not-so-sweet cake who never says please and thank you, never listens to its parents, and is just downright rude. Don't worry though, this rude cake gets its just desserts when it is snatched from its bedroom and forced to become a hat for a one-eyed monster. Fortunately for the cake, these Cyclops are not rude.

When I first read this book, I thought it was rather strange and a bit heavy-handed with the whole politeness message. That was until my nephew came over and made me read it to him again and again and again. I am always fascinated by the things that entertain children and so I finally asked him why he liked this book so much. "Because Aunt Venus," he said, leaning in and whispering conspiratorially. "The cake is just so rude." That's it folks. It wasn't the pencil and ink drawings, even though they were quite cute. It wasn't the message. It wasn't even the fact that there where monsters or that he liked cake. The simple fact is that who would ever expect a cake to be rude? And isn't it funny that one is?

I may not have originally paid this book any mind when I first read it, but once again it was another lesson in seeing these books from the perspective of the children they are written for.

0
comments:

Follow by Email

About Me

Venus is a pre-published author holding a BA in Writing, Literature, and Publishing from Emerson College and a MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults from Hamline University. She is rather obsessed with good writing, science fiction, the hero's journey, epic fantasies, and Indian food.